Pet News Around the Web

An interesting non-profit, Forever Curious.org, reached out to me after hearing some of the radio shows I’ve done about various types of service dogs, in particular service dog organizations that provide dogs for children with autism, diabetes and other special needs.

Forever Curious is an unusual non-profit, a self-proclaimed “labor of love” by a group of volunteer librarians and educators seeking to curate information online. A member of their group has a special needs child who benefits from a family assistance dog, who has become an indispensable part of the child’s treatment, so they are attuned to service and assistance dogs. ForeverCurious.org is an innovative and little-known group whose work can be of useful to educators and students everywhere, so I’m delighted to bring them to everyones’ attention. They curate educational resources and lesson plans online for people of all ages, from preschool through college and adulthood. ForeverCurious.org “seeks to foster a love of lifelong learning that has kept all of us forever curious.”

Its so nice when people doing good connect with other people doing their own flavor of good. I hope these links will be of value to those of you for whom an assistance dog can be life-changing, not just life-enhancing as our companion dogs are for the “rest” of us.

Tracie Hotchner is a nationally acclaimed pet wellness advocate, who wrote THE DOG BIBLE: Everything Your Dog Wants You to Know and THE CAT BIBLE: Everything Your Cat Expects You to Know. She is recognized as the premiere voice for pets and their people on pet talk radio. She continues to produce and host her own Gracie® Award winning NPR show DOG TALK® (and Kitties, Too!) from Peconic Public Broadcasting in the Hamptons after 9 consecutive years and over 500 shows. She produced and hosted her own live, call-in show CAT CHAT® on the Martha Stewart channel of Sirius/XM for over 7 years until the channel was canceled, when Tracie created her own Radio Pet Lady Network where she produces and co-hosts CAT CHAT® along with 10 other pet talk radio podcasts with top veterinarians and pet experts.

Tracie also is the Founder and Director of the annual NY Dog Film Festival, a philanthropic celebration of the love between dogs and their people. Short canine-themed documentary, animated and narrative films from around the world create a shared audience experience that inspires, educates and entertains. With a New York City premiere every October, the Festival then travels around the country, partnering in each location with an outstanding animal welfare organization that brings adoptable dogs to the theater and receives half the proceeds of the ticket sales. Halo was a Founding Sponsor in 2015 and donated 10,000 meals to the beneficiary shelters in every destination around the country in 2016.

Tracie lives in Bennington, Vermont – where the Radio Pet Lady Network studio is based – and where her 12 acres are well-used by her 2-girl pack of lovely, lively rescued Weimaraners, Maisie and Wanda.

Thanks for you comment Wolfmommy. We admire your fortitude in the middle of this impossible time period for true WDs. And we'll always be grateful for Karma. She showed us how bad the labeling debacle was getting in the sheltering world.

Oxo – So kind of you to send a donation today. I'll be buying some pups some fishy-good treats in your honor. Thank you!BAD RAP Blog

Great news! Halo has been nominated for a Veggie Award from VegNews.com for our vegan dog food recipe. Voting is now open until August 31. And don’t forget to vote for our friends, The Humane Society of the United States, in the best non-profit organization category.

Our vegan recipe is a holistic alternative diet for protein-sensitive dogs and has the same essential nutrients found in diets with meat as the protein source. Learn more at halopets.com/vegan.

When you choose Halo pet food, made from natural, whole food ingredients, your pet won’t be the only one with a radiant coat, clear eyes and renewed energy. Halo feeds it forward, donating over 1.5 million bowls annually. As always, Halo will donate a bowl to a shelter every time YOU buy. Thank you for helping #HaloFeeditForward.

Donna, thanks so much for addressing this parallel. When my own girl, Daisy, joined me in 2001, it became devastatingly clear that the model of thought that engenders pit bull-type prejudice is inevitably linked to human ethnicity prejudice. When Daisy joined me, I had no idea that "pit bulls" were a thing. Except that my girl was one, I had no idea that dog breeds could be a target of prejudice. My girl taught me to always greet hatred with love and compassion, even joy. It came to be that while we stood shoulder to shoulder, we were standing for not only ourselves, but for all sentient beings. Tolerance and kindness is non-negotiable, and while it may never become the baseline, I hope that by working together, it may at least become socially formative across ALL demo graphics.BAD RAP Blog

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Disney Junior. Thank you for supporting the brands that help make Bubby and Bean possible.

Long time readers and followers may recall back when Essley was a baby and I beamed with pride over the fact that her first word was “dog.” We didn’t have a dog at the time (although some of you likely remember my sweet Bubby dog, for whom this blog was named), but she was instantly drawn to every dog she saw. Emmett is the exact same way. They are convinced that my sister’s dog Laika and my best friend’s dog Harley are their dogs. They pretend they’re dogs when they’re playing, every single day. And Essley constantly asks me when we’re getting a dog for our house. (It will happen when her little brother gets out of the incredibly exhausting toddler stage, thank you very much.) So it was no surprise to me when they both fell in love with Disney Junior’s new show Puppy Dog Pals. I’m a big fan of the show myself because of the positive messages it promotes (more on that later), and there is very little cuter than watching Essley pretend she and Emmett are Bingo and Rolly, the funny, adorable Pugs that star in it. A couple of weeks ago, she very seriously informed me that Bingo and Rolly (she and Emmett) needed some dog treats. So I decided that dog boned shaped sugar cookies we could make together, inspired by Puppy Dog Pals, was a must. She had so much fun making them, and both she and her little brother absolutely adored eating them. Today I’m teaming up with our friends at Disney Junior to show you how we made them, along with the recipe so you and your little ones can make some of your own!

Cream the butter and sugar, then beat in the egg and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Slower add the dry mixture in the bowl with the wet ingredients until well combined. Chill dough mixture in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Sprinkle the surface you’ll be using with flour to prevent sticking, and roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thick. Use a dog bone shaped cookie cutter to cut out shapes, and place on cookie sheets. Bake for 9-12 minutes, or when edges just begin to turn golden. Cool completely on a cooling rack.

Once the cookies are cool, have fun decorating! We used store-bought pouches of cookie icing (also called royal icing), but you can also make your own, along with chocolate sprinkles. Aside from eating them, the decorating was Essley’s favorite part. (Mine too.)

To really get in the spirit, we also whipped together some quick pug ears for Essley to wear. We just cut out construction paper triangles, taped them onto a headband, and folded them over. She’s been wearing them everyday since.

We have plans to make another batch of our Bingo and Rolly dog treat cookies on August 25th, which is when a new episode of Puppy Dog Pals premiers on the Disney Channel (at 9 AM). Disney Junior‘s FRiYAY morning shows have been such a treat for the kids this summer (you’ve already heard me rave about Sofia the First and Mickey & The Roadster Racers; Lion Guard and Elena of Avalor are other favorites), and it’s been a treat for me as well, to know that the programming they love is full of important lessons and positive messages we can apply to our own lives. In Puppy Dog Pals, Bingo and Rolly are super enthusiastic and gregarious, which often leads them to new adventures (some of which they may not be prepared for). This is Essley’s personality to a T; so watching the pups work together to solve problems and try new things is something we feel is really beneficial for her. And both the kids think the dogs are hilarious, which is fun for us too. (I mean, what’s better than watching your little one burst with laughter?)

You can find Disney Junior shows on two different television channels: Disney Junior (a dedicated channel that runs Disney Junior shows all day long), and Disney Channel (which airs Disney Junior shows during the morning block). New episodes (like Puppy Dog Pals!) usually air on the Disney Channel first. If you’re a fan like we are, also be sure to check out Disney Junior’s Facebook page and on their YouTube for even more fun.

For those of you with dog-obsessed kids with mine, I’d love to hear any fun dog-themed (especially if they’re Puppy Dog Pal inspired) activities or recipes you may have!

Such a wonderful story – both Chappy and Crystal deserve each other and deserve to be happy, supported and loved. I hope this story helps other blocky dogs find a way into homes that need them. Thank you BAD RAP for all your good works – for dogs AND humans.